Sunday, March 30, 2014

Here's my most recent column, published in the Sunday Star Times on 30th March 2014.

Compared to many areas of science, the science of nutrition,
in the scheme of things, is only in its infancy. That’s probably why it often
feels like scientists ‘change their minds’ all the time about what’s healthy
and what’s not. Over the years some very plausible theories have been debunked,
and new ones have been introduced. And there’s always a new theory around the
corner.

One popular theory at the moment – although not new – is
that eating a low carbohydrate diet is the key to good health. It’s the basis
for the old Atkins diet, and the newly popular paleo-style diets, (although some
paleo followers do include more carbs). It’s also the basis for a low-carb diet
with a twist – the low carb, high fat diet, or LCHF diet, being proposed by a
group of scientists as potentially the key to fighting type 2 diabetes and
obesity. On this diet most (about 80%) of the energy comes from fat. That means
eating eggs, fatty meat, fish, cream, coconut oil, butter, cheese and plenty of
non-starchy veges, topped off with extra shots of oil and butter in your
coffee.

Whether that appeals or not, it’s an interesting theory, and
it will be interesting to see what comes from research on it, which is needed
before we can really know if the theory is correct. At this stage it seems
likely that a LCHF diet could work well for some people, although even
advocates of the diet say it’s not for everyone, and the long-term effects are
not yet known.

A common problem with many dietary theories, whether
low-carb-high-fat, or - as has been recently proposed as another ‘best’ diet, high-carb,
low-protein – is that it can be tricky to apply them to our real lives. Most of
us don’t think of our food in terms of percentages – counting grams of carbs
and fat. We think in terms of foods. If the only message we took from a theory
like LCHF was ‘eat more fat’ and we didn’t change anything else in our diets –
it could be disastrous.

However, there’s little doubt that poor-quality, refined
carbohydrates are bad for our health. They’re especially bad when combined with
saturated fat and salt - probably the worst case scenario, especially for people
with insulin resistance or diabetes. But it’s worth remembering that all carbs
are not equal. We could all probably improve our health by looking at the quality of the carbs we eat. Ditch the cakes and biscuits, white
bread, white rice and mashed potato. Concentrate on true whole grains
(not just things that say ‘wholegrain’ on the packet) and low-GI carbohydrates
from legumes and colourful veges. Stick to fresh whole foods and it’s hard to
go wrong, carbs or no carbs.

Personally I think I would find a very low-carb life
difficult. As a food lover, the idea of a life where I could never eat crisply
roasted potato or kumara, fresh sweetcorn, nutty quinoa, or a warm bowl of porridge
on a cold morning – feels like a hard life.

Wednesday, March 19, 2014

Sugary drinks have been all over the news lately. At a two-day symposium
recently held to discuss their impact, we saw calls for sugar-sweetened drinks
to be taxed and even banned altogether.

Where these were once dismissed as fringe demands from the fun
police, and all anyone in government had to do was whisper the phrase ‘nanny
state’ to shut down any debate, the pressure is mounting for a serious
conversation to be had.

The FIZZ group is made up of researchers and public health doctors
who’ve banded together because they believe sugar-sweetened drinks are a major
contributor to poor health in New Zealand. They’re advocating for the phasing
out of sugary drinks from New Zealand, pointing out many studies linking the
intake of sugary drinks with obesity, type 2 diabetes, rotten teeth, gout and
other risk factors for cardiovascular disease and premature death. They say “the
tide of evidence which implicates sugary drinks with these common diseases is
so strong now that ending the sales of these products is justified”. They liken
sugary drinks to tobacco, and say similar strategies should be used to phase
them out, including raising prices through taxes, restricting advertising and
sales, and having ‘sugary drink free’ workplaces and public institutions.

Whether or not you believe that sugary drinks are addictive in the
way that tobacco is – and the evidence does not seem to be quite there yet – it
is hard to argue that anyone needs sugary drinks in their life. I find it very
hard to see the harm in taxing something that really does no good at all in our
food supply, and probably does harm. Yes, life is about personal
responsibility, and we all have to take ownership of our own health. But
sometimes we also have to think of the greater good. For people who don’t have
the awareness, education or knowledge about healthy eating, couldn’t regulation
be a nudge in a better direction? Right now there is a group of people out
there who are drinking enough sugary drinks to do them a lot of harm.

If you are someone who can’t do without a sweet drink in your day,
now could be the time to try and wean yourself off the liquid sugar. You might
start by switching to a sugar-free variety of your favourite drink. Whatever
you think about alternative sweeteners, most experts agree these are a better
option, even as an interim step. There are more and more drinks now available
sweetened with the ‘natural’ sweetener, stevia, and these are also worth a try.

They won’t, however, take away the craving for a sweet taste. Only gradually
reducing the sugar in your life will do that. It takes time, but it is do-able.
Just as with salty tastes, our taste buds gradually adapt to less sweet tastes
when we cut down. If you can get to a place where you choose a nutrient-dense
piece of naturally sweet fruit instead of an energy-dense, nutrient poor sugary
drink, you’ll definitely be on the right track.

Sunday, March 9, 2014

It seems like juices and smoothies are all the rage,
especially green ones. You’re no-one unless you’re instagramming a glass of
bright green something. So are these drinks really the key to glowing good
health?

Juice from fruits and vegetables contains a range of
nutrients, vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients – just like the whole fruit
and veges do. What juice doesn’t typically contain is the fibre that comes in
whole fruit. It’s this fibre that helps keep us feeling full, keeps us regular
and feeds the good bacteria in our guts. When you make juice all that fibre is
filtered off with the pulp, and often thrown away. A smarter idea is to save it
and use it in baking – add to your favourite loaf or muffin recipes, for
example.

Fruit juice – even home-made juice – can also pack a lot of
sugar. Yes, it’s natural sugar, but it comes concentrated – again, without the
moderating effect of fibre that you get in whole fruit. It’s far easier to
drink the juice of four apples than it is to eat four apples, and the former
won’t make you feel full the way the latter will. Fruit and vege blends – or
just veges on their own – are a good way to cut the sugar in any juice you
make. But don’t think you’re getting a serve of veges when you have a vege
juice, and especially don’t make it the only way you get veges. Count it as
extra to the five or more whole vegetables and fruit you’re eating.

Smoothies are a slightly different story. In a smoothie you
retain the fibre from the veges and fruit; everything is crushed up together.
When you make a smoothie you also have the opportunity to add extras for extra
nutrition, like milk, yoghurt, nuts, oats, LSA, coconut, nut butter – the
options are endless. A smoothie is a good way to get an extra serve of veges
into your day. Keep in mind what a serving is: two handfuls of greens or one
handful of other veges and fruit. And again don’t use a smoothie to get all
your veges for the day. You still need veges you can chew.

Be wary of commercially available ‘smoothies’. These can be
nothing more than different kinds of concentrated fruit juices and purees in an
apple juice base – not what you would use if you were making the smoothie
yourself, and probably with less fibre. Some contain 8 or 9 teaspoons of sugar
per bottle.

So what makes for the perfect smoothie? It’s down to
personal taste. Hardcore green smoothie makers don’t include any fruit, just
handfuls of greens. I prefer to eat my greens sautéed with garlic and olive
oil, so that’s not for me. I do like a mixed combo of kale or silverbeet,
cucumber, ginger, banana and pineapple. It looks and tastes delicious, and is
great for you, too.